At Sierra Club Ontario, our work mainly focuses on protecting the Great Lakes ecosystem, growing and protecting the Greenbelt, and promoting Green Energy adoption in Ontario. Sierra Club Ontario also works on very local issues, in coordination with smaller communities in Ontario.
The Credit River is a special feature of Mississauga, and what could be more symbolic of the city’s wish to enjoy and protect its valued river than to grant it Provincial Greenbelt status? But first, public awareness of this opportunity had to develop, as well as political will to break new ground by pushing through the lengthy provincial application process.
Annual Sierra Club Meadow Planting & Medicine Wheel Maintenance
Heart Lake Conservation Area
June 4th, 2016
10am to 2pm
Community wildflower plantings are fun for families, individuals and groups! High school students are welcome to gain volunteer hours
We provide all the equipment needed. Wear sturdy shoes and dress for the weather.
Light refreshments will be available. Bring your own refillable water bottle, please.
By John Bacher
Posted March 23rd, 2016 on Niagara At Large
Windsor’s Ojibway Tallgrass Prairie complex is a natural and national treasure. Pressured from all sides by urban development, Ojibway contains more biodiversity than does Algonquin Park or the Bruce Peninsula. At present it is a patchwork of protected and unprotected areas. Appeals to the Government of Ontario have failed to stop incursions that threaten Ojibway.
One of the most effective strengths of the 2005 Greenbelt Plan and Act responsible for its creation was the good impact they had on protecting the Niagara Escarpment from urban sprawl.
In the preceding years, it had become apparent that the biggest glitch in the otherwise strong 1985 Niagara Escarpment Plan (NEP) was the relative ease with which urban expansions were allowed to take place – even when made the focus of complicated battles before the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB).
Mississauga council has voted unanimously to join the Ontario Greenbelt.
On Dec. 9, City council endorsed a motion to expand the Provincial Greenbelt Plan Area by designating publicly owned lands along the Credit River as Urban River Valley (URV). This could mean more than 800 acres along the Credit River, would be protected lands, ultimately contributing to a healthier natural environment.
Bill 66 (proposed Great Lakes Protection Act)
Submission to the Standing Committee on General Government
23 September 2015
Grant Crack, Chair
Standing Committee on General Government
99 Wellesley Street West, Room 1405
Whitney Block, Queen's Park
Toronto, ON
M7A 1A2
Sylwia Przezdziecki, Clerk
Tel: 416-325-3515
Fax: 416-325-3505
An obscure regulation will come into effect this July as a result of an initiative of the Conservative government of Canada’s prime minister, Stephen Harper. It prohibits the construction of any new coal burning electrical plant in Canada and will phase out those currently operating by the year 2061.....
......While provinces have the power to follow Ontario’s lead and shut down coal burning plants, the federal government has the opportunity to offer incentives to do so.
To read the entire article click here.
JOIN US
When: Sunday, July 5th from 1 pm= 6:30 pm.
Who: YOU and thousands of other passionate people
What: Gathering in Toronto for the March for Jobs, Justice and the Climate.
Why: To stand up against the climate crisis and tell the story of a new economy that works for people and the planet.
Background
DURHAM -- More than 200 residents in Claremont want to see a piece of the Oak Ridges Moraine remain protected in the hamlet.
The Claremont Conservation Group is not pleased with the City’s recommendation that the Province allow opportunities for minor expansions of hamlets into the Greenbelt or the Oak Ridges Moraine. They believe this change could pave the way for a development on the northeast quadrant of Claremont that’s been discussed for decades, but hasn’t budged due to provincial land use restrictions......
Peter Rodrigues, a Whitevale resident and former councillor, felt recommendations by Ajax, which is also providing comment for the review, were in line with his thoughts.
“I’m mostly concerned with including more land into the Greenbelt, particularly the headwaters of the Carruthers Creek,” said Mr. Rodrigues.
Earlier this June we partnered with Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) to host a Pollinator Party at Heart Lake Conservation Area. The weather was great and we were thankful to have the 19 volunteers from Peel region who helped with light gardening and maintenance at the Medicine Wheel Garden and meadow plots.
Before we began work on the gardens the Four Colors Drumming Circle hosted an Aboriginal Drumming Ceremony and storytelling session to welcome spring and educate people on the features of the Medicine Wheel Garden (Gitigaan Mashkiki). It was a really neat experience which engaged everyone and connected us to the work we were about to do.
By: Alyssa Beurling
Beginning in the 1960’s as a result of algal blooms and nutrient management issues, Canada and the US began collaborating efforts to reduce the underlying problem - elevated phosphorus concentrations within the Great Lakes (GL), and Lake Erie in particular (Hill, 2015). This soon led to the creation of the federal Clean Water Act and the Canada-US Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) which set specific phosphorus targets and improved lake conditions into the mid-1990’s (Government of Canada, 2014).
By Kristina Jackson
This month Ontario passed the first North American regulations on neonicotinoid pesticides that are tied to pollinator loss. “Neonics”, as they are often called, are a synthetic pesticide first created in the 1980’s and quickly expanded to become the most common pesticide used on crops worldwide. Neonics mimic naturally occurring insect repellants found in nicotine but the frequency and intensity of current use has been proven to kill bees, butterflies, earthworms and a variety of other insects.
While Toronto may be famous for having green life veins flowing through its heart of forested ravines, the city is surrounded by a vulnerable mass of farmlands leased by developers and the federal government, (as a reserve for the Pickering Airport) for cash cropping that is termed “the White Belt.” While some may romantically call these lands a “food belt”, in reality most is used for grains grown for industrial feed stocks including bio-fuels or to dangerously fatten livestock in their last weeks of life for unhealthy “marbling.”
Check out our cool new promo video on our YouTube Chanel!!
For more information on our Natural Capital Program click here.
Thank you to Community Foundation Mississauga for funding video production.
The commenting period for the 2015 Coordinated Review is now closed but Sierra Club of Canada Foundation has made a submission in support of Greenbelt growth and expansion. Below is a summary of the submission.
Moratorium on Expansion of Urban Development
At this opportunity to review the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, Sierra Club asks the Province to consider a 10-year moratorium on expansion of urban development boundaries, in order to direct growth into increased density and cease the paving over of our fertile agriculture lands and treasured natural areas.
Urban River Valley Designation
Sierra Club of Canada Foundation is working with Peter Rodrigues (former Pickering Regional Councillor, Ward 3) to protect the Carruthers Creek Headwaters which run through Pickering. The letter below was submitted to Richard Stromberg from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and reflects the work being done to rally support for the protection of the Carruthers Creek Headwaters.
GROW THE GREENBELT IN DURHAM -- Protect Carruthers Creek Headwaters
Come join us at Heart Lake Conservation Area in Brampton on Saturday, June 6th from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m!
Learn about the Conservation Area, pollinator plants, and the Gitigaan Mashkiki Medicine Wheel Garden!
Help remove invasive plant species and plant native wildflowers. Activities also include a guided nature walk and Aboriginal teachings.
For more information or to RSVP please contact our staff at ontariochapter@sierraclub.ca
